Reward
by Alabaster86
Summary: Written as a request...Zuko gives Mai a massage..


A/N; Written for Kimjuni...she requested something involving a massage. Hope you like it, Kim.

**Reward**

Mai spent an entire week entertaining the wives of visiting noblemen from the Earth Kingdom. The palace was practically crawling with middle-aged and even doddering old women who required constant attention. They were more like children really; children Mai had to placate and cater to and explain things too. Her entire life, Mai had been surrounded by women such as these. She didn't like them any more now than she had then.

The old women were the worst. They tucked their fragile, bony arms into Mai's strong ones and let her tug them along through the confusing maze of corridors that made up the royal palace. The gardens were a big hit. The women parked their behinds on benches and admired the flowers for hours on end. Mai just fiddled with the knives hidden in her sleeves and fought the urge to remove them from their sheaths, toss them unceremoniously and pin every one of the women down.

Their questions and comments were mostly inane, as if parts of their brains had turned to mush. Mai wondered how their husbands could stand them. Years of doing nothing but host parties, and shop for the latest fashions had done nothing for their intellects; Mai secretly believed their brains had been nothing much to begin with. The only thing that kept the forced smile on her face was the thought of a much deserved evening alone with Zuko.

* * *

At the end of the week, she and Zuko said polite goodbyes to the ladies and gentlemen and watched their perfumed and powdered bodies disappear from sight.

"Finally," Mai said emphatically.

"I guess it was pretty bad, huh?" Zuko asked. "You're awfully glad to see them go."

"It was horrible," Mai replied.

"I'm sorry," the Fire Lord stated sincerely. "But it's part of the job."

"I know," Mai said and rolled her eyes. "And I know just how to handle them. But I hate every minute of it."

"Maybe I should give you a reward," he said, leaning in close to Mai and whispering seductively.

"Maybe you should," she agreed and led him to their bedroom.

Once inside their spacious quarters, Mai stripped down to her underwear, unpinned her ebony hair and stretched out on the bed.

"What do you have in mind?" Zuko asked as he worked at his complicated formal robes.

"A massage," Mai replied.

It wasn't quite the answer Zuko was hoping for but it had possibilities and he always wanted to make his wife feel good.

"Okay; I'll get the oil."

Zuko finished undressing and walked naked into their bathroom. He selected Mai's favorite massage oil, one with a subtle almond and vanilla scent, and then joined her on the bed.

"Why don't we take these off," he suggested and tugged at her underwear. "They'll just get in the way."

Smirking, Mai let Zuko remove the last of her clothing. He looked down at her, wonder in his warm gold eyes. Mai was beautiful. He never got tired of looking at her and he never tired of telling her so.

"Oh," he started, biting his lip. "You're so lovely, Mai. I still can't believe how lucky I am to have you."

"Start with my lovely feet," she ordered and wiggled them provocatively.

The Fire Lord poured some massage oil into the palm of his hand and heated it slowly and carefully. The heat enhanced the oil's smell and soon the entire bedroom smelled deliciously of vanilla and almond. He took one foot and laid it across his thigh, rubbing each toe individually. He massaged the arch and the heel next. Mai groaned appreciatively and her narrow eyes drifted shut. Zuko moved onto the next foot and then progressed up her body, adding more oil and more heat as he went.

By the time Zuko reached her thighs, Mai was completely and utterly relaxed. Every bit of tension and every bit of strain she'd held in her body for the past week vanished.

"Mmmm, Zuko, you're so good at this," she sighed with contentment.

"I try," he replied and heated more oil.

She was at his mercy now and he planned to take full advantage. Zuko kneaded her thighs, working inward. His warm fingers just brushed against her folds and she grunted softly with pleasure. He placed a quick kiss there and then moved upward, pouring oil onto her stomach and placing heated palms overtop. With gentle circular motions he moved out and down to her hips and then up to her breasts.

Her skin was shiny with the oil and looked almost unearthly in the soft, flickering light of their bedroom. Zuko was almost painfully aroused but pushed thoughts of his own pleasure out of his mind. This massage was about Mai, not him, at least for the moment.

With the last bit of oil he massaged her arms and then turned her over so that he could reach her shoulders and back. He saved Mai's perfect bottom for last, rubbing and stroking the firm flesh and then bending down to place kisses along her spine.

"All done," he murmured in her ear.

His hardness prodded insistently against her thigh. Mai turned back over casually and looked at Zuko with a sly smile. She grabbed hold of him and tugged.

"Not quite," she replied.


End file.
